The General Strike Coordination Body (GSCB), which is a coalition of anti-2021 coup strike committees, marked the first anniversary of a paramotor attack that killed at least 24 people attending the Full Moon Day of Thadingyut in Sagaing Region on Oct. 6, 2025.
The GSCB, which was honoured on Oct. 11 with the 6th Forum 2000 International Award for Courage and Responsibility, stated that it paid tribute to the civilians and resistance members killed in the attack and expressed solidarity with their grieving families.
The regime paramotor attack took place during the Thadingyut festival in October 2025 at an undisclosed location between the region’s capital Monywa and Chaung-U townships.
Two GSCB members were among the 24 killed. It accused regime forces of carrying out indiscriminate attacks on civilians, along with the destruction of schools, hospitals and religious buildings since the February 2021 coup.
The regime in Naypyidaw uses public festivals to project an image of normalcy to the world while seeking international legitimacy for the pro-military administration formed after “sham” elections to whitewash alleged war crimes, according to the GSCB.
Regime media reported large crowds at Thadingyut festivals across Myanmar from Oct. 25-27, including religious ceremonies and oil-lamp offerings at Yangon’s Shwedagon Pagoda and in the Karen State capital Hpa-An.
Thadingyut festival events were also held in Naypyidaw, Shan State and Bago Region on Oct. 26. Thousands gathered across the UNESCO World Heritage site in Bagan, Mandalay Region, for the country’s inaugural Sky Lantern Festival on Oct. 25.
This year’s Thadingyut took place amid economic decline after over five years since the nationwide conflict against the coup erupted in mid-2021
A recent U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) report warned that nearly half of Myanmar’s population remains below the poverty line, while conflict nationwide continues to displace civilians across the country.
The GSCB urged the international community to help bring those responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Myanmar to justice.
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